Obama Cancels Putin Meeting Because Of Snowden, Because Diplomacy Is Like Kindergarten

from the petty-disputes dept

The White House had hinted at this earlier, but now it's been confirmed that President Obama has cancelled a planned meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin because of Russia's decision to grant temporary asylum to Ed Snowden. This seems petty in the extreme. No one honestly thought that Putin would simply hand over Snowden. And, really, of all the things to cancel a meeting about, this is the one that pushes him over the edge? He could have cancelled it over Putin's recent homophobic remarks or Russia's latest focus on censoring the internet or putting activists in jail or any number of other things that generally should offend American sensibilities. But using the Snowden asylum as the reason just seems like the federal government is really losing perspective in this whole NSA surveillance debate -- the one Obama claimed he "welcomed."

Honestly, this whole thing feels like kindergarten-style diplomacy. The Russians took "our ball" and so now we're mad at them and won't talk to them. In an adult world, cancelling a meeting over something like this just looks incredibly immature and petty. It's all for show, rather than any legitimate purpose. I'd rather we had a government that didn't do things for show, but for legitimate reasons. Unfortunately, it seems we're well past having that kind of government.

So they'd rather risk major international incidents than back off and actually do some thinking over the situation and start cleaning the mess. Bolivia wasn't nearly as high profile as Russia.

This should be interesting to watch. Right now the Government is causing more damage than any leak from Snowden could. Much like the post 9/11 actions caused more harm than any building blown up could ever cause.

Didn't want to go anyway

I have seen it written on other sites that the WH was looking for an excuse because there wasn't anything to accomplish (in a PR sense) through meetings. No agreements, not even a significant joint statement. And the WH doesn't actually want to discuss serious issues without knowing the answer in advance. It is all theater

Re: Dammit!

Re: Re: Dammit!

Look on the bright side... by cancelling an expensive doomed-to-fail "diplomatic" mission, he's gaining another opportunity for a golf weekend for himself, and a bonus shopping expedition to Martha's Vineyard for his wife.

Das Prez is far less dangerous when he's on a putting green than when ensconced at 1600 Pennsylvania, so let's support his thinly veiled efforts at "diplomacy".

Objectionable

He could have cancelled it over Putin's recent homophobic remarks or Russia's latest focus on censoring the internet or putting activists in jail or any number of other things that generally should offend American sensibilities.

Obama hates bad publicity with a passion. Given how the economic summit went with the publicity photos showing both Putin and Obama looking like to bored school boys during the photo shoot, I would suspect it is more the idea he can't look like a hero in the global communities eyes than it is Putin's actions in granting Snowden asylum.

Putin has done Obama a favor by making it a condition that Snowden can't keep releasing stuff while in Russia. But being the school yard bully, that doesn't work.

The US government, agencies, and executive branch have done more to embarrass themselves over this matter of what they are doing than all of Snowden's revelations. Snowden proved they were doing it with the evidence. Were they not spying on citizens, despite the Constitution outlines, there would be no issues here. Being caught with their fingers in the cookie jar doing what they know they are not supposed to do is what the real problem is. It is compounded by the showing of a lack of interest to own up to this and come clean.

Re: DC needs to send itself some FEMA aid...

Re:

He is nominally the most powerful man on earth, and so he expects to get his own way all of the time. Not doing so gives lie to the proposition that he is the most powerful man on earth, hence the tantrum.

Re: Re: DC needs to send itself some FEMA aid...

Re:

Actually, and somewhat ironically, Bush did what he thought was right regardless of how it looked and got blasted for it. Now, Obama is doing the wrong thing and trying to look good, but comes off looking like a schoolyard bully all the time.